The ability to make good decisions quickly is key, whether you're
a seasoned leader or an entry-level employee. It's a skill that
inspires confidence in your abilities and leads to success.

Shelley Row, an expert in efficient decision-making, says
the secret is listening to your intuition while incorporating
facts, a combination she calls "infotuition." "Infotuition is a
practical leadership tool," she explains. "It's a skilled,
self-aware, decision-making approach — not a willy-nilly use of
the whim."

She shares her advice for listening to your gut, and making
smarter decisions as a result.

1. Consider intuition part of your
intelligence

"We honor thinking, but tend to underplay (or even denigrate)
feeling," says Shelley. In reality, neuroscience shows that
intuition is an essential part of thinking.

"It's as though your brain stores bits of your life experience in
file folders, but the ones you rarely use are in dusty file
cabinets in the back," she explains. "Intuition — a nagging gut
feeling — is information from one of those dusty file folders
trying to get through. We have to let it in by quieting the loud,
logical voice and attending to the quiet, wise voice in our
heads."

2. End your love affair with data

Or at least put it in perspective. "It is inherently
backward-looking," says Shelley. "If the future differs from the
past, data must be viewed with caution."

It's also subject to bias.

"Methods of collection, analysis and interpretation provide
opportunities for bias to creep in despite best intentions," she
says. "Don't get me wrong. Data is an important thing; it's just
not the only thing."

3. Gather information, then take a break

It's not a coincidence that your best ideas occur to you when
you're in the shower or drifting off to sleep. "When we overwhelm
ourselves with activity — and who doesn't? — the brain can't put
all the pieces together, it just gets tired," Shelley explains.

"When faced with a complex decision, review the data, gather
input from the right people, particularly those with differing
opinions, then take a brain break, something that distracts the
mind and lets it wander. The brain continues to work on the
problem during the downtime, allowing it to pick up subtle
signals from the dusty file folders."

4. Watch out for overthinking

Shelley advises looking out for these phrases: "We've been over
this again and again," "This is taking waaay too long" and "We're
making this harder than it has to be." They're key indicators
that you and your team are overthinking the problem.

"When this happens," advises Shelley, "take a step back and
notice the nagging feeling that holds you back."

5. Explore your gut feelings

Ask yourself, "What's bugging me?" or "What's not sitting
right?" Shelley explains that these questions coax the brain to
identify the underlying gut feel, and that it usually points to
either fear or insight.

If it's fear, she suggests talking yourself through it, by
asking yourself, "What am I afraid of?" "What would happen if I
let go of that fear?" "What would I be freed up to do?" If it's
not fear, it may be insight, which Shelley defines as, "some
part of your experience that wants to weigh in on the
decision."